Eric Heisserer
Eric Andrew Heisserer (born 1970) is an American screenwriter and comic book writer. His screenplay for the film Arrival earned him a Best Adapted Screenplay nomination at the 89th Academy Awards in 2016.
Eric Heisserer | |
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Born | Eric Andrew Heisserer 1970 (age 49–50) Norman, Oklahoma, U.S |
Occupation | Screenwriter |
Years active | 2005–present |
Spouse(s) | Christine Boylan (m. 2010) |
He also wrote the horror films A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010 remake), Final Destination 5, The Thing (2011 prequel film), Lights Out and Bird Box, and wrote and directed Hours with Paul Walker.
Career
Heisserer's professional screenwriting career was launched with the sale of The Dionaea House to Warner Bros. in 2005,[1] based on an online epistolary story of the same name[2] that he wrote from autumn 2004 to winter 2006.[1] The Dionaea House was a multimedia novel told across multiple blogs run by fictional characters, and concerned an ominous house that existed in multiple places across the United States. It is considered to be one of the first popular creepypasta stories. He then developed an original television pilot for Paramount Pictures and CBS, and wrote feature projects for Jerry Bruckheimer Films and Warner Bros..[3] In 2007, he sold a pitch to Regency Enterprises and Fox called Inhuman, a supernatural thriller set in Tokyo that combines live action and anime sequences.
In December 2008, Heisserer was hired to re-envision and rewrite the script for the franchise reboot of A Nightmare on Elm Street, produced by Platinum Dunes.[4] An early draft had been written by Wesley Strick. The script went on to land director Samuel Bayer, actor Jackie Earle Haley, and began filming in May 2009.[5]
He rewrote the prequel to director John Carpenter's 1982 remake The Thing.[6] In April 2010, Heisserer signed on to write Final Destination 5,[7] the fifth film of the horror film franchise.
Heisserer made his directorial debut with the film Hours, starring Paul Walker.[8] Heisserer co-wrote The Conjuring 2 along with the brothers Chad Hayes and Carey Hayes.[9] Heisserer wrote along with artist Felipe Massafera and Colorist Wes Dzioba, the comic book series Shaper.[10]
Heisserer wrote the 2016 film Arrival based on Ted Chiang's short story "The Story of Your Life". Heisserer has said that he was attracted to the challenge of adapting the non-linear story by its emotional content.[11] After the release of the film, he was nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay at the 89th Academy Awards.
In July 2017, Heisserer announced that he was developing a science fiction series based on another Ted Chiang story, Liking What You See: A Documentary, for AMC. The series will explore concepts such as beauty, relationships, and advertising.[12]
On 27 September 2017, there was an announcement that Heisserer would write the script for the live-action remake of the sci-fi romance anime Your Name.
Heisserer wrote the script for Bird Box (2018), based on the thriller book Bird Box, by Josh Malerman.[13][14] Released by Netflix, the film stars Sandra Bullock and was directed by Susanne Bier.[15]
Heisserer is serving as creator, head writer, show runner, and executive producer of upcoming Netflix series Shadow and Bone, an adaptation of the fantasy book series The Grisha Trilogy and the Six of Crows Duology.[16]
Personal life
Heisserer is the son of Margaret L., a senior editor for a publishing company, and Andrew J. Heisserer, a professor of ancient history, of Norman, Oklahoma. Heisserer married television producer/writer Christine Boylan in 2010. His previous marriage ended in divorce.[17]
Filmography
Year | Film | Director | Writer | Producer | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2010 | A Nightmare on Elm Street | No | Yes | No | Co-written with Wesley Strick |
2011 | Final Destination 5 | No | Yes | No | |
The Thing | No | Yes | No | ||
2013 | Hours | Yes | Yes | No | |
2016 | Lights Out | No | Yes | Yes | |
Arrival | No | Yes | Executive | Saturn Award for Best Writing Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Screenplay Writers Guild of America Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Nominated – Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Nominated – BAFTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Nominated – Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Adapted Screenplay | |
2018 | Bird Box | No | Yes | Executive | |
2020 | Bloodshot | No | Yes | No | Co-written with Jeff Wadlow |
TBA | Shadow and Bone | No | Yes | Executive | |
References
- "Warners buys spec 'House'; Heyday aboard". HollywoodReporter.com. 2005-05-11. Archived from the original on 2005-12-26.
- Eric Heisserer. "The Dionaea House: Correspondence from Mark Condry". Archived from the original on 2012-04-19. Retrieved 2019-08-10.
- "Writer Eric Heisserer Talks Getting Final Destination 5 Right". DreadCentral.com.
- "Eric Heisserer Paying Attention to the Hallmarks of 'Final Destination' Franchise". Bloody-Disgusting.com.
- Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Joel Edgerton to star in 'The Thing' Archived February 10, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
- "Screenwriter Eric Heisserer Talks Bringing The Thing Story Full Circle". DreadCentral.com.
- "New Title for Fifth 'Final Destination', Opening Disaster Revealed!". Bloody-Disgusting.com.
- "Paul Walker Starring in Post-Hurricane Katrina Thriller 'Hours'". Hollywood Reporter. 2011-10-05. Retrieved 2012-11-07.
- "New Writer Tapped For The Conjuring 2". Dread Central. 2011-10-05. Retrieved 2012-11-07.
- "Eric Heisserer Talks Space Opera In "Shaper"". BD. 2011-10-05. Retrieved 2012-11-07.
- Greene, Steve. "'Arrival' Screenwriter Eric Heisserer on Writing the Unfilmable Story: Awards Spotlight". IndieWire. IndieWire. Retrieved 15 September 2017.
- Riesman, Abraham. "Arrival Screenwriter Developing AMC Sci-Fi Series". Vulture. Vulture. Retrieved 15 September 2017.
- "Eric Heisserer In Talks To Adapt 'Bird Box' For Universal". deadline.com. 16 July 2013. Retrieved 17 July 2013.
- "'Mama' director Andy Muschietti in talks for 'Bird Box'". digitalspy.co.uk. 27 February 2013. Retrieved 17 July 2013.
- Kroll, Justin. "Sandra Bullock to Star in Netflix Thriller 'Bird Box'". Variety. Retrieved January 25, 2018.
- Andreeva, Nellie; Petski, Denise (January 10, 2019). "Netflix Orders Shadow And Bone Series Based On Leigh Bardugo's Grishaverse Novels From Eric Heisserer & Shawn Levy". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved January 15, 2019.
- "Christine Boylan, Eric Heisserer". The New York Times. October 22, 2010. Retrieved October 9, 2012.
- Heisserer, Eric (23 January 2018). "As an agnostic I find merit in the theory that the rapture has happened in slow motion and only Prince, Bowie, and Ursula made the cut". @HIGHzurrer. Retrieved 2018-01-24.